After pitching a scoreless inning against the Reds Thursday, Indians ace Justin
Masterson told reporters “I figure somehow, some way I'll end up still being here for a few more
years." It’s a pleasant thought for Tribe fans to ponder, but it will take more than spring
optimism to make that happen.

The two sides took a break in negotiations on Feb. 19
and avoided arbitration by settling on a one-year deal worth $9,726,500. But the multiyear deal
Masterson wants now has the six-year, $105 million deal Homer Bailey signed with the Reds on March
20 as a comparable. The “somehow, some way” of Masterson’s comment doubtless includes coming close
to that.

Seven teams contacted former Browns linebacker D’Qwell Jackson upon his release,
according to sources cited by CBSSports.com’s Jason La Canfora, who reported that he has already
scheduled free agent visits with the Denver Broncoes and Tennessee Titans.

Former Browns general manager Tom Heckert is on the
Broncos’ staff and the team has an acute need at inside linebacker with both of its top linebackers
unrestricted free agents. The Titans have former Browns defensive coordinator Ray Horton on staff
and also have a need.

The Minnesota Vikings are also one of the other teams
interested.

Former Notre Dame quarterback Gunner Kiel was probably the most watched player as
Cincinnati started spring practice this week. Kiel, a sophomore who sat out 2013 as a transfer and
has three years of eligibility remaining, is regarded as the heir apparent to Brendon Kay. Redshirt
sophomore Bennie Coney would have been in the mix but he is transferring. That leaves junior
college transfer Jarred Evans to battle Kiel for the job this spring.

Fifth-year senior Munchie Legaux would have provided
further competition, but he is rehabbing his knee and will not be available before summer.

Michigan offensive tackle Taylor Lewan improved his stock with impressive workouts
at the NFL combine and also used it as a stage to clean up what he says are some mistaken
impressions of him. For one thing, he disputes reports that he got into an altercation with a fan
from Columbus following the Wolverines’ 42-41 loss to Ohio State on Nov. 30 outside an Ann Arbor
restaurant.

“I wasn’t in any fight,” Lewan said. “I was actually
breaking something up. Some guy said I slugged him. That’s not who I am off the field. It’s not the
kind of person I am. It might seem that way because of the way I play football but it’s not who I
am.”

Lewan also denied that he made comments to a woman who
was reportedly a rape victim of former teammate and roommate Brandon Gibbons back in 2009.

Shortly after the woman reported the rape, she said she
began to receive threats from Lewan that he would rape her again if she pressed charges against
Gibbons.

“That’s definitely a situation between those two
people,” Lewan said. “I am not here to protect Brandon or the young lady. That’s not what I am here
to do. I am here to talk about football. I can say I never said those things. I’ve said a lot of
dumb things in my life but those are not things that I said. That is a touchy subject. I would
never disrespect a woman like that. I consider myself a guy who likes to hold doors, not threaten
people.”

Lewan is considered the third-best tackle available in
this year’s draft behind Texas A&M's Jack Matthews and Auburn's Greg Robinson.

ESPN Senior VP/Programming Scott Guglielmino told Sports Business Journal that
ESPN and Fox are still negotiating a joint bid for Major League Soccer and U.S. Soccer rights. The
networks were reportedly closing in on eight-year, $70 million deal in early January, but
Guglielmino said the delay doesn’t mean the deal won’t get done.

"It's somewhat complex in that you're dealing with two
different properties, and it's a long-term deal," Guglielmino said. "It's taking a little bit
longer than we would have liked, but we're going to hopefully get something done."

Michigan opened its spring practice sessions this week with several players taking
new positions, the most notable being the move of redshirt freshman defensive back Ross Douglas to
running back and junior defensive end Keith Heitzman to tight end.

"Ross Douglas moved to running back, we thought we
could get a little more depth there," Michigan coach Brady Hoke told MLive.com. "He was a
2,000-yard rusher in high school and he showed us some things during the fall, we thought we'd do
that."

Hoke also said junior linebacker James Ross has moved
to strong-side linebacker to replace new middle linebacker Jake Ryan. Senior Desmond Morgan is now
Michigan's starter at weak-side linebacker, where Ross played last season.